Here Alone

A woman tries to ride out a pandemic in the forest in Here Alone.

Ann lives in the forest, surviving on berries and wildlife throughout the aftermath of a pandemic in which the virus turns people into murderous zombies, for lack of a better term. She has been on her own for some time and can take care of herself. She eventually stumbles across Olivia and Chris, a teenage girl and her injured stepfather. She reluctantly agrees to help them. With two new allies who do not possess her survival skills, she may have been better off alone.

The virus in Here Alone is standard fare. Victims don’t necessarily re-animate, they just turn into raging attackers. While rarely seen, there are a few intense encounters when they are on screen.

The story jumps around a bit with flashbacks offering a glimpse into Ann’s transition from wife and mother to apocalypse survivor. A slow pace does not hurt the buildup but the story stalls in the middle. After meeting Olivia and Chris, the film drags for a while. Exploring the relationship between the three characters is important to the plot but it takes some time before returning to the original goal of staying alive.

The acting is okay. There is limited dialogue through the first act and the behavior of the characters is believable. The visual effects are a little lacking. With limited interaction between the characters and the infected, some of the intensity helps make up for it.

Here Alone has some good moments. Ann goes through a lot to become such a strong woman. Chris and Olivia have a disturbingly creepy relationship and encounters with the infected are well done. The problem is there just aren’t enough of these moments sustain a feature film. Here Alone was obviously not meant to be an action-packed zombie movie. It is a solid, independent art house film but it tries too hard to be cerebral and falls a little short of actually entertaining.

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THE FINAL CUT

Is it worthy of a spot in your permanent library or should it be left on the cutting room floor?
The final cut score includes five categories on a scale of 1-10 and calculated for a final percentage.

CATEGORIES

Originality: have we seen it all before?

Acting/Script: Do the actors and writers have any talent or are they just well-connected to the filmmaker?

Plot: It does not need to be plausible but it should be enjoyable or interesting.

Appropriate gore: Is there some good gore and is it used the right way?

Production value: Lights, camera, sound quality, etc.

SCORES:

90-100%-Drop what you are doing and get to a streaming service. Grab the popcorn, drinks and your favorite hockey mask. Whatever you do, find a way to see this one!

80-89%-Sometimes it is better to stay home on Saturday night. You will be glad you stayed home with this one.

70-79%-Then again, maybe you should have gone out. This one is nothing special but it can pass the time if you are working the overnight shift or babysitting some little demons while everyone else is out having fun.

60-69%-this is actually the most insulting kind of bad film because the producers, director, studio, etc., try to pass it off as a legitimate horror movie. It is a slap in the face to fans who expect and deserve better.

59% and below -Hey guys, my dad gave me a video camera for my birthday so let’s make a movie. The critics in the cutting room sat through this piece of “S.” We watched the whole thing and wanted to stab ourselves in the face. At least you get to miss this one.